Deadpool

Deadpool20th Century FoxDir: Tim Miller250 Shots

With an opportunity to construct an entire setting from scratch, our team conceptualized a fictional city that blended interesting elements of Chicago, Vancouver, and Detroit. We labored over every detail, from the city skyline to trash on the side of the road, rusted overpasses, and broken-down train cars. Our background traffic moves convincingly from overpass to exit ramp, and hero vehicles are accurate inside and out, right down to their orange-peel finish.

Digital effects were required for everything from muzzle flashes, to dust and debris resulting from the sequence’s key action moments. Deadpool (and all the bad guys who have it out for him) are fully-digital for many complex stunts throughout. We utilized both motion capture and keyframe animation to realize their choreography.

Wireframe to Mayhem.

We have developed some great technology, such as physically-accurate cameras and lights, but it is our doctrine that makes all the difference.

Consider a live action crew’s ability to wet down six miles of freeway. Possible? Not likely. Knowing this, we proceeded as if we were limited by the same considerations, and voila, our road surface is inconsistent; sometimes wet, sometimes dry, yet all-the-more real.

We added caustic reflections that bounce from building to building, and even toiled with time of day. As virtual cinematographers, we love shooting into the sun (who does not look great back-lit?) but we also worked hard to simulate changes to sun position, cloud cover, and light quality that would occur from shot to shot.